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Was Charleston Shooter, Dylann Roof, On Suboxone Too Long?

The tragic shooting in Charleston, South Carolina occurred at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on the evening of Wednesday, June 17th. Dylann Roof traveled to Charleston from his hometown in Columbia and entered the church to join in prayer for an hour. Then, the 21-year-old allegedly said to those congretated, “I’ll give you something to pray about,” and then took the lives of nine innocent individuals with shots fired from a .45-caliber handgun. Roof was caught by police the following day 245 miles away from Charleston in Shelby, North Carolina.

Charleston Shooting Raises More Questions

The horrific crime struck the world with both shock and terror. Governor Nikki Haley of South Carolina claims, “the heart and soul of South Carolina was broken,” when Dylann Roof shot six women and three men to death.

Twenty-year-old Joseph Meek has known Roof since they were young children and noticed his personality change. “He was saying all this stuff about how the races should be segregated, that whites should be with whites,” Meek described. “I could tell there was something inside him; there was something he wouldn’t let go…All he would say was that he was planning to do something crazy.” Meek explained how reserved Roof could be, but noticed a change when he drank vodka, which provoked his ideas “to start a race war.” However, Meek felt his friend wasn’t going to take any real action. “But if someone had taken him serious, this all would have been avoided,” said Meek.

Suboxone Abuse

In February, Dylann Roof was questioned by police for acting suspicious at a local shopping center, when police found on him “a small unlabeled white bottle containing multiple orange square strips” which Roof explained was Suboxone, a drug that is most commonly used to treat opiate addiction. The main problem with Suboxone though, is that it is not meant to actually treat opiate addiction long-term. It is intended to be used to help opiate addicts detox. It should not be used as a long-term treatment or solution because it is a narcotic that has addictive properties.

Effects of Suboxone

The long-term effects Suboxone can have on a person, who may already have an undiagnosed mental health issue, could result in devastating effects, such as the Charleston shooting. In fact, a significant number of massacre killings have been associated with drug abuse.

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina knew about Dylann Roof because her niece was in 8th grade with him. “He was quiet, strange, very unsocial and everyone thought he was on drugs,” she commented. “I just think he was one of these whacked-out kids. I don’t think it’s anything broader than that. It’s about a young man who is obviously twisted.”

Given this new information, could these killings have been prevented had Dylann Roof been treated for his opiate addiction, as well as any other underlying mental health disorders, rather than just given another mind altering drug without proper treatment?

It is not a theory; it’s a fact that opiate addicts can recover long-term without extending their Suboxone use after they have been medically detoxed. The goal is to remove these addictive substances from the body entirely so that the person can enter a full program of recovery and abstain from drugs and alcohol life-long.

Are you concerned that you may be suffering from an addiction to Suboxone and/or other substance? Contact The Watershed for help today.